Is It Laziness—or Executive Function? How to Help Kids With Focus, Organization, and Follow-Through With Carrie Bonnett, EP 163

Send us Fan MailWhat if your child isn’t being lazy or difficult…but is struggling with a brain skill that still needs to be taught?In this episode of That’s Good Parenting, Dori Durbin talks with Carrie Bonnett, veteran teacher and Executive Function coach, about the brain skills kids use to get important things done—and why understanding those skills can completely change the way adults respond when children struggle.Carrie explains executive function in wonderfully simple terms: these are the brain skills behind things like planning, organization, time management, focus, self-monitoring, impulse control, and getting started.And importantly, these are skills that can be taught.Together, Dori and Carrie explore:• Why behavior that looks lazy, resistant, or defiant may actually signal a lagging executive-function skill• How breaking big tasks into smaller “chunks” can reduce overwhelm• Why analog clocks can help children actually see time passing• How visual checklists can make invisible expectations easier to manage• Why “I notice…” can open a more helpful conversation than criticismCarrie shows parents and professionals how to bring those things into view with practical supports children can actually use.If you’ve ever wondered why your child seems perfectly capable of doing something—and yet somehow still can’t get started, stay organized, or follow through—this conversation may help you see the struggle very differently.About Carrie BonnettCarrie Bonnett is a veteran teacher, lifelong list-maker, and Executive Function coach based in Bend, Oregon.She works with students and families around the country using a practical, no-shame, brain-first approach that empowers students to thrive, helps parents and teachers better support them, and gives adults practical tools for managing everything life requires.In addition to coaching, Carrie creates digital resources, including her signature course Get the Brain on Board and a series of No-Shame Guides for Parents. She also provides brain-based workshops and trainings for parents, teachers, and other professionals.Carrie is also an adjunct instructor at the University of Portland, where she supports early-career teachers.Connect with CarrieWebsite:https://www.carriebonnett.comInstagram:https://www.instagram.com/coachcarriebonnett/Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/coachcarriebonnettLinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/carrie-bonnettFree Resourcehttps://www.carriebonnett.com/toolkitAbout Dori DurbinDori Durbin is a children’s book illustrator, book coach, and host of the That’s Good Parenting podcast.She helps parenting experts and family-focused professionals kid-size their big concepts into children’s books so families can continue learning important expert content long after a podcast episode, coaching session, or conversation ends.https://www.doridurbin.comWould you like to help shape future resources for kids and families?The That’s Good Parenting Club is completely free and gives you a behind-the-scenes opportunity to participate as children’s books and parenting resources are being developed.You may be invited to share your opinion on story ideas, concepts, characters, titles, covers, illustrations, reader reactions, and other decisions before publication.Join and participate for free:https://club.thatsgoodparenting.com/clubIntro for TDP (version 2)